5 Must-Haves for Stinky Summertime Situations

Photo Courtesy Freshify

Dancers know there's no time like summer for sun, sand...and sweat! Gross but true: Whether your summer intensive has air conditioning or not (just because some people like to yell about how AC is bad for dancers), there's no denying that summertime dancing brings with it all kinds of sweatiness—and resultant smelliness.

There are a LOT of makeup-removing wipes on the market, but very few tick as many boxes as C'est Moi's Gentle Makeup Remover Cleansing Wipes. Hypoallergenic? Check. Vegan? Check. Free of fragrances, phthalates, sulfates, and parabens? Check, check, check, and check.

Courtesy of Freshify

It seems like the benefits of essential oils are being touted all over Instagram these days. Freshify has combined witch hazel and popular essential oils like spearmint, Roman chamomile, lavender, and tea tree to make a cooling, soothing, and naturally deodorizing spray for your hardworking feet.

Courtesy of Secret

Yes, that clinical strength deodorant is supposed to last 24 hours, but what does that promise really mean once you've been sweating it out in class all morning? Secret's Freshies are the super-cute way to reapply deo while on the go—and let's be honest, dancers are pretty much never not on the go!

Via mondor.com

Antibacterial tights are now a real thing that exists, thanks to the clever people at Mondor. For at least 50 washings, the trademarked BodyFresh material will halt the growth of bacteria that leads to body odor. What a time to be a dancer. (Side note: They're available in both convertible and footed styles, in shades ranging from "ballerina" pale pink to caramel to black.)

Master pointe shoe fitter Josephine Lee of the California-based ThePointeShop chats with Ballet West soloist Chelsea Keefer to hear about how she prepares her pointe shoes. Keefer offers lots of darning tips, and shares all of the unusual ways that she uses rosin.

Today's ballet dancer needs a lot from a pointe shoe. "What I did 20 years ago is not what these dancers are doing now," says New York City Ballet shoe manager Linnette Roe. "They are expected to go harder, longer days. They are expected to go from sneakers, to pointe shoes, to character shoes, to barefoot and back to pointe shoes all in a day."

The team at BLOCH developed their line of Stretch Pointe shoes to address dancer's most common complaints about the fit and performance of their pointe shoes. "It's a scientific take on the pointe shoe," says Roe. Dancers are taking notice and Stretch Pointe shoes are now worn by stars like American Ballet Theatre principal Isabella Boylston, who stars in BLOCH's latest campaign for the shoes.

We dug into the details of Stretch Pointe's most game-changing features:

Earlier this year, we shared that photographer Dane Shitagi's Ballerina Project—his gorgeous, ongoing collection of dance photos that have dominated our Instagram feeds for years—would be coming to an end. But all is not lost—startingSeptember 17, you can enjoy over 170 of these photographs in Ballerina Project, a stunning new book showcasing Shitagi's work.

Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution might not seem like a natural fit for the ballet stage. But that's exactly the topic of one of choreographer Kathryn Posin's three new ballets, scheduled to premiere at New York City's 92nd Street Y September 13-14.